Court Admits Adeeb and Ziyath Testimony in Yameen's V. Aarah Case

Criminal Court has decided to accept the testimony of former Vice President Ahmed Adeeb and former MMPRC Managing Director Abdullah Ziyath, submitted by the state, in addition to defense witnesses presented by former President Abdullah Yameen in the V. Aarah lease case. The ruling was issued today by Judge Ali Nadeem. The state's charge against Yameen in the case alleges that, as part of the major MMPRC corruption, he accepted USD 1 million as a bribe in connection with the transaction to lease V. Aarah, and laundered the money. Former Felidhoo constituency MP Yousuf Naeem is also charged in the same case. Yameen and Yousuf Naeem's defense is that the USD 1 million deposited into Yameen's account was money obtained from dollar trading transactions, and that the Maldivian rufiyaa equivalent of that dollar was handed over to Yousuf Naeem as cash. To prove this, the defense submitted as witnesses former Deputy Mayor of Malé Ahmed Nareesh, a person named Abdullah Rasheed, Vilimale constituency MP Mohamed Ismail, and Hulhudhoo constituency MP Mohamed Shahid. A document explaining the dollar trading was also submitted as evidence. The state had requested that the court not allow the evidence, saying it had not been disclosed during the investigation. Judge Ali Nadeem, however, decided today to allow that evidence. He said the state's request not to accept the evidence was related to the weight given to the witnesses' testimony, and that it was a matter for the court to decide after taking the testimony. As a preliminary submission before trial, Yameen's side had requested that many witnesses including Adeeb and Ziyath, who are state witnesses, not be accepted. They argued that under the current Evidence Act, the testimony of Adeeb and Ziyath cannot be accepted. Judge Ali Nadeem said Adeeb's testimony is testimony that must be taken in this case, and that Adeeb and Ziyath are the ones to testify regarding the facts involved in the case. While the judge decided not to accept the testimony of Dhiggaru constituency MP Ahmed Nazim as requested by Yameen, he allowed all other state evidence. Previously, Nareesh testified that the USD 1 million deposited into Yameen's account was money obtained from dollar trading and that the Maldivian rufiyaa equivalent was handed to Yousuf as cash. However, major questions have arisen about that testimony, and Nareesh has also contradicted himself by testifying as a defense witness in the R. Fuggiri case against Yameen.